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Picture this, a priest sits on his side of the confessional booth. He hears a parishioner enter so he slides back the little window expecting to hear "Bless me Father for I have sinned" Instead he hears "Father I've been retained by a large parish to conduct a search for a priest".

Sound far fetched? Well not really, in the true American tradition of finding your niche David Lyons a former corporate recruiter decided that there was a need to provide recruiting services to help churches find pastors and other staff.

Called MinisterSearch Lyons says that
We have the ability to identify and attract better candidates than a church could ever do on its own," said Lyons, "because this is all we do, all day long."

"Sheer numbers" is MinisterSearch's biggest selling point. A typical church committee might select a minister from a few dozen resumes; the firm networks with thousands of ministers, including many that churches wouldn't know about.

"Typically the best candidate is a `passive candidate' -- someone who is not actively looking for a job," he said. Through its networking efforts, MinisterSearch develops confidential contacts with candidates who aren't job-hunting but who may be willing to relocate if the right position comes along.

And he is not the only game in town either. Apparently there is a website devoted to the same market called churchstaffing.com which allows churches so search for their next pastor via the Internet.

So how do you interview a priest anyway?

"Father can you give us a breakdown of how many souls you have saved in the last three years?"
"how's your conversion record?"
"Can you give us a sample sermon?"